Graduates
Some of NSCD’s graduates:
Akram Khan; Allan Hutson; Amanda Weaver; Ana Chidzoy; Andrew Obaka; Anna Kenrick; Anna Larsen; Anthony Missen; Balbir Singh; Ben Joiner; Benji Reid; Charlotte Darbyshire; Chris Owen; Craig Maguire; Darren Pritchard; David Duncan; Davina Givan; De Napoli Clarke; Debbi Purtill; Donald Edwards; Dwight Powell; Dylan Quinn; Eleesha Drennan; Emily Burns; Errol White; Fleur Darkin; Gail Claxton Parmel; Garry Benjamin; Gary Clarke; Gary Simpson; Gavin Coward; Gerard Martin; Helen Parlor; Helen Smith; Hian Ruth Voon; Ian Piears; Imogen Knight; James Flynn; Jane Kellaghan; Jason Bradley; Jason Pennycooke; Jasper Marriott; Joanne Bernard; Junior Cunningham; Karen Asemper; Kate Jackson; Kath Duggan; Kathinka Walter; Kathy Williams; Keira Martin; Kevin Turner; Kirsty Redhead; Kwesi Johnson; Leanne Lappin; Lisa Bibby; Lisa Welham; Lisi Perry; Louisa Keohane; Louise Seloy; Mandy Braden; Marcia Edwards; Maria Hippolyte; Mark Pearce; Marlon Gulbrandsen; Matthew Wolfenden; Maxine Fone; Menelva Harry; Natalia Thorn; Natasha Fewings; Navala Chaudhari; Niamh Condron; Nicola Moses; Nonie Bradley; Pamela Johnson; Pete Russell; Phil Hill; Rachael Lines; Rachel McDermott; Rachel Wesson; Rajpal Pardesi; Raymond Roa; Rebecca Bramwell; Rebekah Stokoe; Richard Webb; Robert Hylton; Rodney Alder; Ross Cooper; Sarah Storer; Sarita Piotrowski; Sean Selby; Simon Birch; Simon Moore; Sioda Martin; Steve Houghton; Steven Benoni; Stuart Bowden; Stuart Waters; Sue Smith; Tamsin Fitzgerald; Tanya Raman; Tess Chaytor; Thomas Ramsay; Tom Roden; Tony Louis; Tracy Tinker; Vicky Debio; Yamuna Chaudhari; Zoe Parker; Zoobin Surty.
Graduate's comments
“One of the strongest moments I can recollect about the school, was during my first weeks there. I suppose, growing up in an Islamic community and being exposed to the Asian culture, the 'body' was something of a dilemma for me, so, during the ballet classes, I kept on making excuses to the ballet mistress about why I was not wearing a leotard...Finally, one morning she came up to me and whispered in my ear 'if I do not see you in a leotard tomorrow, you will have to just be naked in front of the class, because I need to see your muscles work in order for me to correct you'. Being so shy, how do I explain, the struggle that I was going through to her. My body, my insecurities, my frustrations about going against everything I was brought up to know, and about humiliating myself in front of the entire class with my thunder thighs and terribly short body. The strange thing is when I did turn up eventually in my leotard, nobody really bothered to look. I realised that I was not naked to them, but only to myself and gradually I came to accept that I could never change what I am - whether it is my height, or my hips, or even my DNA - but who I am, will never stopped changing.”
Akram Khan - graduated 1998
“Tough! Life at NSCD was tough! Training at the Northern was also a great privilege.”
Claire Gibbs — graduated 1992
“When I think back to the dreams I had about becoming a dancer – walking through the doors of Northern seemed to be the answer to becoming the dancer I’d imagined I could be.”
Simone Foster – graduated 2001
“NSCD opens doors to your body – your SELF – and all the endless possibilities there are for you. Do it through Dance.”
Niamh Condron – graduated 1999
“I always remember the first time I stepped into my first pair of ballet shoes. Squeaky clean leather with black elastic sewn in a crisscross by my mother. I had the same shoes for 3 years and still have them to this day. They are unrecognisable. Battered, bruised and shaggy from the endless hours of Tendu’s and Rond de jambe’s in Studio.”
Gary Clarke – graduated 2001
“Wow! Was it really that long ago that I walked into the NSCD? When I say ‘walked’, of course, I mean danced! It was a new beginning: armed only with a selection of cheap, shiny leotards, a healthy amount of puppy fat and the obligatory ‘80’s perm. I still remember every detail vividly: the beginning of an experience that would change my life in every way.”
Debbi Purtill – graduated 1989
“Every student who passes through the doors at NSCD is special. Every minute you spend within the walls is a lesson, an opportunity, and an experience. You are given everything you need to be a professional. You have to make every minute count. (1,577,846.3 minutes actually, that’s a lot of opportunities and experiences)”
Saz Kiernan – graduated 1996
